Sky Ranch! - Page Text Content

1: We're on our way... | It was a long, 2 hour ride on the bus, but the destination was worth it. For two nights and three days, we had a field trip to SKY RANCH.

2: Our first class: Challenges | My group (Group E) went with Kadeem, one of the counselors at Sky Ranch to start our first class. We did: -The ball game -The Secret Code game -The Lily Pad or "lava" game. | We thought about traits of a good team. These character traits reminded me of how we had a Citizen of the Month. | My group playing the ball game.

3: One connection I made was how the challenges we did are like the one we face at school, or home, or anywhere else. We cannot rely on our parents or teachers to solve them all the time. | In school, we do a lot of group work, just like in those games. Once we did something that wasn't fair to the rest of our team, we realized that in any group, we have to realize and do the same. | Listening to instructions.

7: We looked at samples of leaf decomposition (sand sample, one month sample, six month sample, and one year sample.). We also explored the Carbon Dioxide/Oxygen cycle. | This cycle was a lot like the rock cycle, since the Carbon Dioxide and Oxygen get dropped off, changed,and transfered over and over like rocks. | Another group looking at the six month sample

8: We also observed different animal's skulls to see what animal it was, if it was a predator or prey, and if the animal was a herbivore, carnivore, or omnivore.* | This activity reminded me of when the scientist Kinetic Karen came and told us to guess if different liquids were a base, acid, or neutral. | http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chouette_%28Cr%C3%A2ne%29.jpg | Guess what animal it is,what type of eater it is, and if it is a predator or prey.

9: Last of all, we observed the environmental impact in three places around the zip line. We compared them and saw how impacted they were by humans and erosion. | Area 1 was the most impacted. There was even some clay showing because of how humans and erosion affected the topsoil. | http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Droga_w_w%C4%85wozie.jpg A path that is used a lot. Clay will appear soon.

10: Our third class: Forces in Nature | In this class, we did an activity to go more deeper in gravity, friction, velocity, distance, and time. Two of our chaperons rode on the zip line. They were timed. | Then each group had to use items in a box to try to make our chaperon go faster, and after that test, slower. We were also taught the formula for finding velocity. (T\D=V) | One Chaperon going down the zip line

11: My group also broke into smaller groups that each built rocket with different goals, such as to fly a certain distance. My group's goal was to make our rocket explode. | This project was a lot like the rocket project we had at school, except in this project, we had to use paper, and think about air pressure and the rocket's design with air pressure. | Planning our rocket

12: We also listened to lessons on energy sources, the rock cycle, and weathering. | "Weathering is the breaking down of rocks into itty-bitty pieces" | ENERGY SOURCES: Fossil Fuels Wind Power Solar Power Hydroelectric Bio fuels Geo Thermal | When I'm at home, sometimes I like to slip on the tile floor in the kitchen with socks on. The force of friction helped me stop slipping. | http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6NETiZT2n8 | http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rockcycle_edit.jpg Rock Cycle

13: Our last class: Limnology | Last of all, we went to Sky Pond for our first activity. Once we were there, we were given a mission: to see if Sky Pond was healthy. | WHAT IS LIMNOLOGY? Limnology is the study of fresh water. So, the scientists that study limnology are called limnologists. | Sitting down on benches by Sky Pond

14: We looked at the color, the temperature, sounds, smells, and signs of life. After that, we went all over the pond to scoop up samples of the pond's dirt and looked for macroinvertebrates. | At my old school, we did the same thing to determine if the plants at the school had a healthy environment. | After that, we made a conclusion. Sky Pond was healthy! Why? Because macroinvertebrates that were sensitive to pollution lived in Sky Pond.

15: Finally, we reviewed the water cycle: -Evaporation Water turns into it's vapor form. -Condensation The vapor forms a cloud. -Precipitation Water falls from the cloud. -Collection/Runoff The water "runs off" into groundwater or a body of water. | http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hailstorm_in_Dutchess_County,_New_York.JPG Hail storm | Like steam from a train | Hail, sleet, rain, snow

16: Let's Play: Recreation Time | Rec time has two hours. On each hour we can do different activities.